Gardeners, homeowners, caretakers, landscapers, and foresters encounter numerous unwanted small trees, vines and fibrous weeds. There may be many reasons to remove these plants, collectively referred to in this application as "weed-trees." They may be unsightly, they may have stickers or burrs that attach to the clothes of humans or the coats of pets and other animals. Perhaps most significantly, species of weed-trees have been identified as noxious or restricted noxious weeds. Such identification may be for many different reasons. Often weed-trees are identified as restricted noxious weeds because they inhibit the growth of desirable plants such as cultivated or native species. For example, in the northeastern and midwestern parts of the United States certain species of buckthorn have invaded native woodland areas and created an understory of brush that crowds out native trees such as oak, maples, and ash. There is thus a strong need for these weed-trees to be removed.
Weed-trees, however, are often difficult to remove by pulling or other traditional weeding techniques because their roots anchor them solidly in the ground. Oftentimes weed-trees grow near foundations of buildings, in planting beds with rock or plastic mulch, in rocky soils, or next to desirable plants. Such conditions complicate the removal. Digging out weed-trees may be difficult due to the proximity of other desirable plants or rocks on the surface or in the soil. The use of herbicides may not be an option given the proximity of desirable plants or a reluctance to use potentially harmful chemicals. Cutting weed-trees may only encourage vigorous re-growth.
The present invention is intended primarily for the easy removal of such unwanted plants. The implement also could remove small posts, stakes, or poles; remove concrete forms; or lift portions of heavy objects such as large pavers or small concrete slabs. The implement could be constructed with a sharp edge on one end of the head for trenching and for chopping objects such as roots. A claw on the other end could be used not only for tree removal but also for cultivating soils and for digging smaller weeds, trees, or other items from the ground.
There are tools presently available intended for the removal of weed trees. One tool is referred to as the "Weed and Brush Puller." Another tool is referred to as the "Weed Wrench." Both of these tools use clamping mechanisms to grip the stem of the weed-tree and then use leverage for the removal of the weed-tree.
The present invention represents several advances over these tools. First, the present invention has a limited number of parts and at least one embodiment has no moving parts. Multiple parts and moving parts tend to increase the cost of manufacture or assembly. They also increase the potential for failure of the device. Second, the present invention can be used for the removal of a greater variety of weed-trees. For example, the stems of weed-trees can vary dramatically in size and shape. Oftentimes, one encounters a stem which has been cut near the base and re-sprouted or a weed-tree may have multiple stems or very low branches. Because the existing tools identified above use clamping mechanisms to engage the stem, these tools may have difficulty in gripping a weedtree that has been cut or one with multiple branches or stems near the ground. Third, the present invention is more versatile. It can clear dirt or debris around the stem to ease removal or chop roots. The present invention can also be used to pry objects such as stakes or ones embedded in the ground or other media.